General Winston's Daughter by Sharon Shinn

Eighteen-year-old Averie Winston travels to Chiarrian (a distant country) to visit her father, who is a commanding General, and her fiancée Morgan. Her father has invaded the country and is working to overthrow local government and rebel forces. As she learns more about the situation and herself she realizes that Morgan is not the man that she thought he was; and slowly falls in love with Lt. Ket Du’Kai, who himself comes from a conquered society. Averie delves into the culture, wanting to learn everything she can, and forms a friendship with a local Chiarizzi girl Jalessa, who teaches her about their culture. Political resistance continues and rebels threaten colonial rule, security is heightened and tension rises.

Hmm, it is hard to say what I thought of this book. I had recently read “Summers at Castle Auburn” also by Sharon Shinn, which I loved so I thought this book sounded somewhat similar and the plot interesting, but was somewhat disappointed. I thought Averie was very childish and naive, and was hoping that her character would grow throughout the book, but she did not. It seemed like the focus of the book was more about the country of Chiarrian and their traditions/beliefs, and not on an actual story.

***Possible Spoilers***

The love story was a disappointment, it seemed like there was more interaction with Averie and Morgan than with Averie and Ket. Morgan actually seemed like a pretty decent guy who was truly in love with her, and other than his love for war, he was hard not to like. I found the relationship between Averie and Ket hard to believe because they were never together, so how could they really have fallen in love. They had nothing in common and really didn’t know each other. The romance part of it was lacking, and I think she picked the wrong guy, only for the fact that the character of Ket was underused. If she had built up their relationship I probably would have enjoyed it more and not minded her choice.

The main twist at the end was predictable and I knew from the beginning what would happen. I was still disappointed since even though Averie was immature, she was sincere in her new love for the people and country, so her betrayal was very sad.

If you like a book about politics, war and make-believe places then you will probably enjoy this story.
Reviewed by: Kathy