(Scheduled for 9/20/16)
I had the privilege of reading "The Ill-Kept Oath" prior to its release. It was a great read. The beginning of the story follows the pattern of a historical fiction. There is a young heiress and her cousins who were orphaned and raised as her siblings. Prudence needs to find a husband with a fortune, but she is torn because she doesn't want to marry someone she can't love. Josephine is a bit of a rascal that is known for her dramatics. Edward is struggling with his place and leaves school to pursue other interests. Somewhere in the middle, this story takes a turn from the usual and veers toward the fantastic. There was anxiety over who to trust, abilities begin to take form, a curse is placed and a love/hate relationship that ensues. The ending left me anxious to find out what happens next in the story. If you are a fan of historical fiction or sci-fi/fantasy, I would recommend you read this book.


This book will be released on September 27th!

“Prudence cast furtive glances round the salon, taking in the splendor of more gentlemen than she’d seen in her life. The place abounded with broad shoulders, tobacco-scented jackets, and booming male laughter.”

So one of the heroines of The Ill-Kept Oath enters a drawing room filled with prospective beaus, hoping for romance but finding harrowing intrigue instead. Likewise, readers who open this book will find themselves drawn into rich townhouses and grand country manors, where they might expect to find only young women aiming for marriage and hoping for love, but where a pair of old trunks filled with magical items soon drive the plot in a wholly unexpected direction. A talking ring, rampaging trolls, and a secret society of mages and warriors all conspire to lure heroines Prudence and Josephine away from the typical and into the extraordinary. While Aune revels in the fanciful, she keeps her prose and setting firmly grounded in the historical. Beautifully written in Austen-like language, the novel is filled with authentic details, from the delicate choreography of early waltzes to the gory horror of an amputation without anesthesia or antibiotics.

I rarely give out five stars, but this book outdoes Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell in its literary mix of the mannered and the magical. It was one of those novels I truly couldn’t put down—I stayed up late and resented every intrusion by family, friends, and pets until I’d read the final word. I cannot wait to see where the series goes next.

I came pretty close to giving up on this book. Five chapters in and it wasn't grabbing me. Then chapter six happened and I was hooked.
It has the familiar feel of every Regency era book I've read, but I liked it anyway. Great romances with plenty of drama and fist-shaking moments. The mysteries of the Talismans may have been dampened in light of the romance, but it will undoubtedly get more attention in the second book.
At the start I liked Prudence because she seemed more level headed. Then Josephine got her act together and I preferred her character. (I think one of them should've had a shorter name to avoid confusion. They don't have the same personality but I had trouble keeping their names apart.)
Overall I had a fun time reading about all the mishaps and triumphs of our female leads and am looking forward to more regarding their stories.
Shout-out to the author for making the men pine over the women too. That is not seen enough.

The Ill-Kept Oath
Author: C.C. Aune

**I received a copy of this upcoming book from W.I. Creative Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for a fair, honest review.**


Set in Regency England, the Ill-Kept oath is about cousins Prudence Fairfeather and Lady Josephine Weston. The two young ladies are coming of age, and will discover true magic, adventure and family secrets that will change their lives forever. This isn't a run of the mill historical romance. Not even close. Take a London Season for Prudence and the excitement of uniformed soldiers for Josephine and add in magical talismans, trolls in the forest, and dangerous family secrets. It makes for a fun, exciting, supernatural-fantasy-historical-romance thrilling romp!

I loved this book! The two main characters are very different in personality but both are engaging and believable. The side characters were well-developed and the story engaging throughout. I loved the threat of trolls wandering through the woods outside the Manor. It made the story a bit like Pride and Prejudice and Trolls. Who needs zombies when you have trolls?

The plot was not predictable. It left me guessing until the end. There were several twists and turns that I didn't see coming. I was engrossed in the story the entire time!

I love the fact that C.C. Aune took a basic story added in some zigs and zags and created a combination romantic-fantasy-supernatural tale! Although she has been writing for most of her life, this is C.C Aune's first published book. What a kick-ass debut novel!!! I absolutely LOVE IT when I read a first book that just knocks my socks off!! I will definitely be looking for more books by this author!

This book would definitely make a great movie!

The Ill-Kept Oath will be published by W.I. Creative Publishing on September 27th. For readers who enjoy period romance, sci-fi, fantasy or action-adventure, I highly recommend reading this book!! Pick up a copy and help a first-time author, or ask your library to get a copy for their shelves! You won't be sorry!!

I was entranced by this book from the very beginning. I have always been fascinated by the Regency era and am a huge Jane Austen fan. I have to say that C.C. Aune definitely nailed this time period very accurately.
Prudence Fairfeather and Lady Josephine Weston are cousins who have "come of age". Prudence receives her late mother's ring and is sent off to London for her season debut to hopefully find a husband while Josephine stays at home in the country.
This seems like a typical Jane Austen style novel until the regiment and the trolls show up. Yes, trolls. Apparently, all is not what it seems in Regency England.
I had so much fun and enjoyment reading this and am very intrigued by the magical world that the author has created. I am really hoping for a book two.
I received a copy of this book from W.I. Creative Publishing for free in exchange for an honest review.

"The Ill-Kept Oath" is a historical fantasy which alternates between Prudence and Josephine, two young women who are cousins. They live in different places but exchange frequent letters. Both women are at an age where they are mainly thinking about marriage. Prudence is given a box of objects that were her parents' from her aunt and caretaker, and Josephine finds a similar box at her house. The objects are strange and slowly they begin to suspect that there is a magical quality to them. However, it's clear that the adults in their lives are keeping things from them.

The main element of the story is each of the women's romantic interests. Prudence is poor and her options ate limited but she is pursued by Underwood, who is dull but wealthy. However, she seems interested in William MacNeal, who seems to be blowing her off, even though the chemistry is undeniable when they are together. Josephine becomes interested in Quimby, the young military man starting near her estate on a secret mission. However, he would not be up to society's standards for her. She also spends a lot of time arguing with Prudence's brother, sometimes in a way that might hint at more. I won't say more to avoid spoilers.

The magical/fantasy elements are a smaller part of the story, and we only get hints about what the objects from their parents are/mean until near the end. If you like clean historical romance, this book would probably be great for you. However, if you are looking for an action-packed fantasy, this book might be too slow for you. I like elements of both styles, so overall, this book was pretty good for me after the slow start (about the first 10% was a bit too slow for me). I liked the letters between the two cousins interspersed with their lives; it made it more unique. The hints of these objects and their histories drove a mystery that kept me reading to learn more. It certainly is a unique style!

Please note that I received this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

An interesting mash-up of Regency romance and the "Buffy-verse", but I felt the plot drag in the second half and would have appreciated more of the paranormal element and less of the Marriage Mart drama-drama. Will look for the sequel to see if the writing evens out.

Summary

Historical fiction at its finest, The Ill-Kept Oath blends an Austen-esque story with magic and mystery in a beautiful story about love and family.

Set in 1819, it follows two girls, cousins and best friends as one moves away from the country to start her Season in London. Even though they are miles apart, the girls remain in close contact through letters and it is these letters which connect their two stories as romance, adventure and a touch of magic befalls the both of them.

Plot

There is no one plot to this book. While the description given on Goodreads implies that the girls’ magical legacy is going to be the central focus of the book, it is actually their romantic endeavours which gets centre-stage. Each of the girls’ confusion over their feelings and the feelings of the men they’re interested in is explored in interesting ways and this meshes perfectly with the more supernatural elements of the story, with the magical side of things playing a driving force in those relationships. While the novel itself does feel slow-moving in places, particularly towards the middle, the beginning and ending are perfect, with the final quarter of the book being a pay-off of all the different threads in the novel.

Characters

Aune has created incredibly well-structured characters in this novel, each one fitting perfectly into the setting and the role given them. Josephine was an instant favourite of mine – her personality was lively, entertaining and translated well into her story line. Prudence, on the other hand, was very different and it was difficult to relate to her at times. Her irrational behaviour in certain parts of the books is explained later on. She strikes a perfect balance with Josephine and, if she had been any different, I don’t think it would have worked quite as well.

World/Setting

This is probably the area I was least convinced by in the novel. I loved the era The Ill-Kept Oath was set in and I thought both the story and characters fit in beautifully with the setting. However, I had a lot of trouble, especially towards the beginning of the novel, trying to understand the Inheritance – what is was, what the history of it was and why it could not be revealed to the heirs. While it was explained a little better towards the end of the novel, it was a long wait to get that explanation and I found that wait a bit frustrating and confusing.

Final thoughts

While there were a couple of minor things which did not quite work for me in The Ill-Kept Oath, I can’t deny that it is a fabulous book. The amount of work that must have gone into it is evident and the writing is reminiscent of Austen’s novels, but brought up-to-date for modern readers. I thoroughly loved the letters between Josephine and Prudence – they brought the story together and really solidified the relationship between the two girls, which quickly became one of my favourites in the novel, despite them rarely being in the same scene together. Aune had created a brilliant novel and I cannot wait for the sequel.

One of the things I loved about this novel was the language and style of the writing. As I had mentioned earlier, anything from Regency England is going to get my approval, and the author did a fantastic job of bringing that world to life. I enjoyed the details of life during those times and the struggles of both Prudence and Josephine to act as expected rather than as they desired. I also loved how unique their characters were; they were powerful forces to pay attention to all on their own, but they didn't clash when put in scenes together. I enjoyed reading parts of the story through letter format, as the girls would communicate to each other that way - it allowed the reader to know exactly what each girl thought about specific things that happened to the other character. Sometimes, it could be a little confusing because I couldn't tell which letter had arrived to which girl when, but overall the effect was brilliant. The other characters that were introduced were also interesting and unique, which is always a good thing in a novel; no one wants to read a book where all of the characters seem the same.

The plot itself could at times be a little .... slow. I was intrigued both by what was happening with Josephine and by Prudence, which is an amazing feat to accomplish because most of the times, there is one character who seems to lead a more interesting life than the other. However, with that being said, it just seemed like there were little bursts of action happening, followed by a longer stretch of nothing. It would have been nice if there had been a continuous flow of information and activity happening that gradually increased in action and thrill, and led up to the culminating point. For example, Josephine encountered a troll, but the time after that was filled with speculation and other things that didn't really have anything to do with the supernatural events. Similarly, Prudence was focusing a great deal on finding a suitable husband (which was very interesting to read about!) but then suddenly had a supernatural experience. It was a little jarring for the reader, and really didn't help with the flow of the story.

The only other thing I wished the author had done was give more of a background into the magical aspects. I'm sure she will do so in the sequel to this novel, but it would have been fantastic to read about how the girls learn more and more about the magical things in their past throughout the story.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this novel, with its historical aspects and its wonderfully-crafted characters. The plot is intriguing, the story is well-written, and I'm hoping that more will be revealed about the fate of Josephine and Prudence in the upcoming sequel!

This book reminded me of Jane Austen with a touch of fantasy.

This book did have a slow start. I almost gave up on it. Then chapter six grabbed me and wouldn't let go. The strong female characters help make this book so poignant. I could even see this book as being popular for YA. Although there is some magic, this book was more romance than fantasy for me. There were places where the book dragged some but it did not take away from the story. A pretty good book set in the regency era.

Two cousins. A dark family secret. A looming rebellion.

In Regency England, a mysterious inheritance draws Prudence Fairfeather and Lady Josephine Weston out of candlelit ballrooms and into the shadows of insurrection.

A newcomer to London society, Prudence longs for the enchantment of love and instead finds real magic in her late mother's ring. But power brings peril, and strange mishaps culminate in an assassin's bullet. Ensnared by the web of a malevolent socialite, Prudence forsakes romance to fight for her freedom.

Josephine fears an eternity of confined country life until rampaging trolls, a gang of drunken vigilantes, and a flirtatious officer bring her all the adventure she craves. Compelled by birthright to take up arms, she embraces her newfound, unladylike abilities to shield her loved ones from harm.

As danger drives a wedge through their friendship, Josephine and Prudence must face their magical legacy and the enemy who will kill to control them.



* * * * *


This book really tickled me. It reads like a historical romance with bits of the paranormal painted around the edges.


The reader really gets to know the cousins through their correspondence they send back and forth. Yes this was back in the days where a person would write long letters to keep in touch. Along with the letters, we are privileged to see what is really happening in their lives. I enjoyed being able to see what they did and did not share.


There is enough going on with these cousins that there is never a dull moment in the story. The dialogue is witty and the writing is elegant. There is just enough hinted about on the paranormal side to keep the reader entranced.


I do highly recommend THE ILL-KEPT OATH to any reader who enjoys historical romances as well as the paranormal. Personally I am hoping that another book will come out in this series as I still have questions.


*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed within are my own.