Eden Conquered

May 1, 2018
The vanquished princess Carys, thought to have been killed in a mortal struggle with her twin brother, Andreus, in the first volume in the series, continues her arduous journey. With a handful of loyal followers, Carys returns to the Palace of the Winds to reclaim the Throne of Light. Weakened by the severe punishment she received in the Trials of Virtuous Succession and addicted to a powerful painkiller, the Tears of Midnight, administered by her nefarious mother, Carys nevertheless begins to be aware of the hitherto subconscious influence of the magical wind on her actions. Meanwhile back at the castle, Andreus, now king, is adept at repairing and maintaining the wind-powered, steampunk-style electrical lights which keep the Xhelozi monsters at bay. However, he remains vulnerable to the Machiavellian plotting of the Elders and his delusional but still powerful mother. Carys realizes that the enemy is becoming stronger as chaos in the castle causes the virtues to become unbalanced in the kingdom. She feels compelled to return to help her brother, if only she can follow Seeress Kiara's advice to safely wield the wind by retaining control over her anger. The ending indicates that a sequel will surely follow this fast-moving, intricately plotted thriller with a powerful, charismatic heroine, skilled in armed combat and learning to control her impulses.Sure to appeal to teens raised on the Hunger Games and Divergent series. (Fantasy. 13-18)

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May 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 The Trials of Succession have ended. Prince Andreus is now king of Eden, and his twin, Carys, once his closest friend, then his most bitter rival, is dead. But this new life isn't what Andreus thought it would be: the kingdom is more fractured than ever, the people meant to advise him whisper behind his back instead, and the people Andreus once trusted without question aren't the allies he thought they were. But in the dangerous wilderness outside of Eden, Carys lives on, believed dead by her kingdom, and struggling to control a volatile magic that threatens to overcome her. As tensions grow in the city of Eden, a reunion between the twins seems inevitable?the Trials of Succession may not be over yet. This conclusion to a duology begun with Dividing Eden (2017) moves briskly along. Other tales of warring siblings, such as Kendare Blake's Three Dark Crowns (2016), offer fuller worlds, but this has plenty of engaging plot twists and family secrets. Charbonneau's many fans will be eager to see how it ends. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The genre-hopping Charbonneau hit best-seller lists with the first in this duology, and those fans will all be back for the concluding volume.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)