Reader and Raelynx by Sharon Shinn

“The young mystic Cammon, a reader capable of seeing the truth in the hearts of others, has been summoned to the palace to read all of the suitors vying for the hand of the Princess Amalie. Cam soon begins to suspect that Amalie herself is a mystic. Her thoughts are opaque to him, and she has an intuitive control over the fearsome raelynx that is kept caged in the palace. And he also begins to fall in love with her, and she with him—a relationship that is, as they both know, doomed. Amalie is royalty. Cam most definitely is not. But their personal concerns are swept aside as the long-brewing rebellion against the king comes to fruition. In the fearsome battle that ensues, Cam and his friends are tested in body and spirit, as they bring to bear all of their skills, magical and otherwise, in defense of their king and his heir, Princess Amalie—the woman Cammon loves, the woman whose secret he must keep, no matter the cost.”

This is the fourth book in the Twelve House series, and it is one of my favorites. It is written almost as the last in the series but I know there is one more left, although that one is from a totally different point of view. Cammon and Senneth are really the main characters in this book, I was once again delighted to hear more from Senneth. The relationship with Amalie and Cammon is no great surprise (although, for me it was lacking some of the passion or intensity of Senneth-Tayse or Kirra-Romar), it is still fun to see how they slowly grow to trust, depend on and love one another. Amalie is a fun character and I was happy to learn more about her and just how powerful she really is. Shinn really ties all the previous stories together and I am continually impressed with her imagination. Justin and Ellynor are present enough, as well as Kirra and Donnal. Though Donnal still remains a mystery to me, I don’t know him as well as the other characters, which is a shame because I think I could really like him. I still haven’t gotten any closure on the Kirra-Romar-Donnal situation, and wish that Kirra would have been put in a position where she really had to chose between the two men and then move on. I’m still left feeling like Donnal is second place, or that she just settled for him, and I think he deserves better. Maybe the next book will clear it up, but I doubt it. Anyway, it was a fun read and I had a hard time putting it down. I’m sad this series is coming to a close; it has definitely been one of my favorite series in a long time.

Book One: Mystic & Rider
Book Two: Thirteenth House
Book Three: Dark Moon Defender
Book Four: Reader & Raelynx
Book Five: Fortune & Fate
Queen in Winter